Packing Up the Tools

I have recently returned from a trip to Minnesota with my brother. The purpose of the trip was two-fold, first to pack up my dad's tools and bring them to California, and second, to say our final farewells to our dad, who passed away last September.

Dave flew from San Francisco, and I flew from Los Angeles, and we met at the Mineapolis airport at 6:30 a.m. after our red-eye flights. After picking up our rental car, we ate our traditional breakfast at Perkins, shopped at Lunds (and bought some aged-prime rib-eye steaks at $24.99/lb! Thank you, Susan!), and drove to South Haven.

We spent some time chatting with Susan, and then went to packing up the tool room. So many tools! And all in perfect shape. My dad really knew how to care for his tools. And organized! Walls of jars of screws, assorted by size, and all appropriately labeled! On Tuesday night, we ate the steaks which were wonderful, and then went into Annandale for Dairy Queen dipped cones.

On Wednesday, we spent more time packing, and tried to work on getting a truck. We initially reserved a 16 foot truck, but only needed a 10 foot truck. We eventually found one, and drove into Minneapolis to pick it up. Before we dropped the rental car at the airport, we went to eat at Vescio's. I blogged on our failed attempt last October to eat at Vescio's, this sime we were successful. It was smaller and less crowded than I remembered, and the food was passable, but not as good as I remembered.

We drove over to Saint Anthony where we grew up. Our old house is still there. The trim used to be blue, it is not brown. 35 years ago, the trees in Saint Anthony were all saplings. Now they have matured, and the streets are a thickly tree-lined canopy. The Apache Plaza mall is torn down, and a Main Street Mall is in it's place. The old Dairy Queen is still there, but the Red Owl is gone, as is the bank, Kresge's, and Sandy's Hamburgers. Dave noticed the new fire station. Our old elementary school, Parkview Elementary, is gone. After the trip down memory lane, we returned the rental car, and ate at the Hamel Dairy Queen on the way back.

After packing the truck on Thursday, we took Susan to dinner at McBride's by the Bay, a favorite haunt for a burger and a beer. Dinner was followed by, what else, a trip to Dairy Queen for dipped cones.

On Friday, we woke early, said our goodbyes, and drove west on I-94 through Moorhead, Fargo, Jamestown, Dickinson, and into Montana, stopping every two hours to change drivers. We finally arrived in Billings, some 800+ miles away in the early evening.

Saturday was shorter in miles, but not by much by time. We drove from Billings south through Wyoming, west to Idaho, south to Nevada, and east to Elko, where we stopped, exhausted, for the night. We were amazed and awed by the Snake River Gorge bridge at Twin Falls, Idaho. A magnificent canyon carved into the basalt by the relentless river, and a bridge spanning the gorge is a marvel. Of course, Dave was fascinated by the fact that Evel Knievel had once tried to jump this gorge on September 8, 1974. The ramp he used is still visible from the bridge.

From Elko, we drove east to Reno and then California. Unfortunately, we encountered heavy traffic from Reno all the way to Sacramento. We timed our arrival in Reno perfectly, as it was the end of their Hot August Nights weekend, with over 700,000 visiting Reno for the event.

We arrived safely in Danville in the late afternoon. On Monday, I drove niece Lauren's 1998 Mustang back to South Pasadena. Only after Dave worked on it, and made sure it was road worthy! 2400 miles driven in four days.

Lots to reflect on, for some later blog posts, perhaps.